Our staff reviews games to help your family find new games to play that are worth your time and money! Please see our review policy for more information.
When I cracked into Expedition Leaders I was excited. I enjoy asymmetric player powers because they can help you figure out how to play a game and introduce even more ways to play. But how many different versions of a treasure hunter/archaeologist could they have?
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Boblin’s Rebellion is more than just cute goblins. It’s a good engine builder with a unique twist: Your engine is constantly falling apart.
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I love that here, you’re kind of dividing the group in half every round, but everyone is still working towards the same goal. I also love how the teams are changing all the time with shifting roles.
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The kingdom’s princesses have come together for a spectacular five-day celebration. But not everyone made the guest list—every needy prince in the land, feeling snubbed, plans to crash the ball. As a strong, free, independent princess, you’re determined to dodge their unsolicited marriage proposals. You’re not just any royal, you’re a Rebel Princess! Rebel Princess is a trick-taking game that
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The Guesser flips over all the cards and tries to match the cards to the sketches on the table. They’ll put a descriptor card and a subject card for each sign, and once they finalize their choices, it’s time to score!
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Even if you never go past the four walls and 120 cards of the Gateway box, this is a full and wonderful Lorcana experience.
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Your goal in Flip 7 is to be the first player to score 200 points. But you cannot do that in a single round. Each round, you’ll score points based on the cards in front of you. But you’ll bust and get zero points for the round if you have two cards with the same number.
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I suspect almost every game-loving parent has had experiences similar to mine. I used to play Dungeons and Dragons with my friends…
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I think this is a great step up from traditional memory matching games. The storytelling aspect is a nice twist, and when everyone feels invested in the stories, it actually makes it easier to remember what item was placed where.
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Lost Ruins of Arnak isn’t kidding when it says it’s for players 12+. The decision-making space is probably too much for kids much younger than that. But it’s a great game for teens and parents alike.
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Another Man’s Treasure is a great option for a game to take out if your family only plays games with regular playing cards and you just want to mix it up. And if you’re playing with multiple generations, I suspect you’ll run into more than a few situations when you throw down grandma’s canner and have your own story to tell about your own family’s weird kitchen gadgets.
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There are lots of different kinds of tasks involved here – matching, dexterity, memory, logic, and following instructions. And the combination of the timer and group participation on the Hide-and-Seek task means that no one has time to get bored.
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Roll a die or flip a card, then use chopsticks to grab the right food in Octo Grabbo, a dexterity game that’s best for kids age 4-10.
EVERY kid under 12 years old that played this with me loved it and couldn’t get enough.
When it comes to spicy food, less is definitely more. My taste buds don’t handle heat well. That’s why Jalape-No! hit the spot for me.
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Reign of Dragoness is a light, approachable game that plays well across generations. If you’re familiar with traditional card games, you’ll pick this up quickly.
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Looney Labs did some fun and clever things with how they want you to put your words together for success in this game.
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Flutter is a beautiful, thematic game. But the petal tracking and some of the complexities set the experience back. It’s a fun puzzle, but I would wait to bring it to the table until the kids are a little older and have better fine motor control.
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“The dual nature of the cards forced me to keep swapping back and forth and think of both aspects of every card – how it could be used for its scoring condition, and how it could contribute to the goals I’d already set out.”
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With so few points in play, you’ll quickly realize that every single point matters. But all of the combos and non-point bonuses fill the gap to keep every turn satisfying.
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